Lenovo Z500 vs S04IN. Which one?

[xsreality]

Hello,

Over the past 3-4 days, I have been extensively reading the "Laptops and Netbooks" forum to decide my next laptop. With a budget of 45-50k, I have come down to these 2 laptops:

Lenovo Ideapad Z500 (59-380480) Laptop (3rd Gen Ci5/ 4GB/ 1TB/ Win8/ 1GB Graph)
vs
Samsung NP550P5C-S04IN Laptop (3rd Gen Ci5/ 6GB/ 1 TB/ Win8/ 2GB Graph)

My requirements:

1) What is your budget? (INR or USD)
45-50k

2) What size & weight consideration (if any) would you prefer?
Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen

3) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
My Current laptop is Dell Studio 1555 which got blown after 5 years of excellent service. Except battery which died within 1.5 years. Now I am bored and want to try non-Dell.

4) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
I am a power user - laptop remains ON for most of the day (& night).
Mid-level gaming enthusiast. Would love to be able to play upcoming games in mid-level settings for at least 1.5-2 years.
Entertainment (Songs and movies).
In that order.

5) What screen resolution(s) & type (glossy/matte) would you prefer?
For last 5 years have been working on 1366x768p HD WLED display. Would love to have 900p but not a deal breaker.

6) Anything else you would like to say? (eg: local purchase, ASS, matte/glossy finish)
I can buy from FK or from local market - whichever is cheaper. Currently residing in Pune, will be checking out the local markets.


Reasons why I like Lenovo Z500:

• Brand Lenovo! Sturdy and rugged. Not a fan of Samsung for laptops.
• Sleek looks – I like the look of Z500 more than S04. This has hit me more strongly than usual.
• Closer to budget 45k compared to S04.

Reasons why I like Samsung S04IN:

• 900p screen – A break from the boring 768p since last 5 years
• Better GPU (650M) although I don’t mind 740M in Z500
• JBL Speakers with sub-woofer (Friend has a Dell XPS 16 with these speakers – awesome sound!)
• 2 x USB 3.0 – In recent times have been copying a lot of data from a friend’s ext. HDD to mine and vice-versa. So 2 is better than 1

I have read through the dedicated forums of these laptops. What I understood is that the S04 has heating and throttling issues. Forgive me if this is rectified as I couldn't read through the complete S04 forum. The Z500 has weaker battery life but that is not a big issue with me as I will be mostly using the laptop at home on power.

So please help me decide. RON28, anupam_pb, rohitshubham, sam_738844, $hadow and others… need your expert guidance!

 

[powerstarprince]

Go for S04 no heating or throttling issues
z500 has its battery integrated.. u are a power on user so the battery cannot be removed while plugged in.

 

[$hadow]

+1 to what the gentleman above said.

 

[RON28]

the only problem of Lenovo Z500 is non removable battery, if your laptop is ON for 24 hours , lenovo z500 shouldn't be consider because after few months you will hardly get 1 hour battery back up because of your POWER USE,
so consider those laptops which have removable battery so that you can operate by taking out battery.

SO1IN and S02IN had throttling issues, S04IN and S05IN are happy with there laptops. so go for S04IN and SONY 15E is also a good laptop if you are a casual gamer. it has also got sub woofers.

 

[xsreality]

Thanks for the reply. Does using laptop on power with battery in place really hamper battery life in a big way? If yes, how is removing battery a good solution? If power goes laptop will shutdown improperly...

Is it better if once the battery is fully charged, remove the charger until battery discharges and then put the charger back on?

 

[sam_738844]

650M is slightly better than 740M...+1 for samsung

 

[xsreality]

the only problem of Lenovo Z500 is non removable battery, if your laptop is ON for 24 hours , lenovo z500 shouldn't be consider because after few months you will hardly get 1 hour battery back up because of your POWER USE,
so consider those laptops which have removable battery so that you can operate by taking out battery.

SO1IN and S02IN had throttling issues, S04IN and S05IN are happy with there laptops. so go for S04IN and SONY 15E is also a good laptop if you are a casual gamer. it has also got sub woofers.

OK so this must be the reason why my previous Dell Studio battery didn't last long. I was not aware that battery deteriorates faster this way. Although my usage is not literally 24 hours, but it is similar to a desktop PC (almost always at home) so it will most certainly be on power. That still rules Z500 out . Is there any alternative way that can help save the battery?

Good to know that throttling and heating problems are not present anymore with S04. The Sony 15E series have U processors. Will I be able to play the upcoming FPS and strategy based games at medium settings for at least an year? I plan to use this laptop for another 5 years. May buy a desktop PC later when I settle but no laptop for a long time.

650M is slightly better than 740M...+1 for samsung

Thanks Sam. Yes GPU wise Samsung is better, though I am a bit apprehensive about Brand Samsung as far as laptops are concerned. Also there ASS is not good, right?

 

[powerstarprince]

samsung is the only best choice or else u can wait for more new releases. The only other choice u can have is buy a refurbished y500 if u are okay with it. Since u need it for next 5 years i think u should be good with brand new laptops only... but then i don't think refurbished is that bad. The only next choice u can get is dell 15r turbo with i7 .. but the chance is rare.
People here always tell us to refrain from ulv processor laptops. They will be good for next 2 years but then god knows..
So get a minimum i5 M processor from intel and a high/powerful mid-range graphics gpu. The mid-range gpu are suitable to play all games for the next 4 years and decreases with their power. It kicks off with the gt 750m and gt 650m is not far behind. Currently gt 650m will play all n most games in high settings and hd resolution. As far as specs are concerned refurbished y500 is really good.

 

[xsreality]

samsung is the only best choice or else u can wait for more new releases. The only other choice u can have is buy a refurbished y500 if u are okay with it. Since u need it for next 5 years i think u should be good with brand new laptops only... but then i don't think refurbished is that bad. The only next choice u can get is dell 15r turbo with i7 .. but the chance is rare.
People here always tell us to refrain from ulv processor laptops. They will be good for next 2 years but then god knows..
So get a minimum i5 M processor from intel and a high/powerful mid-range graphics gpu. The mid-range gpu are suitable to play all games for the next 4 years and decreases with their power. It kicks off with the gt 750m and gt 650m is not far behind. Currently gt 650m will play all n most games in high settings and hd resolution. As far as specs are concerned refurbished y500 is really good.

Do you mean the refurbished Y500 that is available on Greendust for 49k? It is being discussed in another thread. I did some research on Greendust and the result is quite negative. Check this link: Greendust - Consumer Complaints Forum and this too: GREENDUST.COM Reviews, GREENDUST.COM Online Shopping, Shopping Site, Information, Frauds, Security. Too many dissatisfied customers. A guy who ordered a laptop on COD never received it while another who paid the money is still waiting for a replacement. I highly doubt it to be reliable. I have posted these links on the other thread as well.

I will be sticking with a new lappy only since I plan to stay long with it. The U processors might be good enough for my needs but since I am shelling out upto 50k why not get the best processors in that range. That's my line of thought anyway.

 

[powerstarprince]

Then don't go for that y500 then.. recently few ppl liked that particular deal, and most of them were also okay with the refurbished thing. btw s04 overshoots ur budget by 1-2k. Since u want a desktop replacement go for the best specs u can get in ur budget.

If the laptop has an ulv processor with turbo boost which only i5 or i7 has.. then it's not that bad too.
The performance with boost enabled beats most of the i3 and comes close to the i5 when used with boost. You should try getting the s04.. don't get the s01 though its 50k or less. It had heating issues in the past. If u can't get s04.. get the new sony fit model at 45k.. and see that it has a removable battery.

 

[xsreality]

How is the Asus K55VM-SX086D Laptop (3rd Gen Ci7/ 8GB/ 1TB/ DOS/ 2GB Graph) laptop when compared to these two? It has an i7 processor but GPU is 630M. Would this fit my needs? Also, is this an old laptop? Is it easily available in local markets?

 

[powerstarprince]

The only plus point of that asus laptop is that it has an i7 quad core and being a reliable brand they can work flawless for years.
The drawback of it is the gt 630m gpu which is getting outdated and a 3rd gen i7 on a non-gaming laptop would heat a lot and should be coupled with a cooling pad. Disable turbo boost to game and u can reduce a few degrees in temps. This heating is usually when u run intensive apps especially games.. but for all other purposes it's not a problem at all.
The other stuff are that it lacks good audio and has an average display..
read this review if u haven't Review Asus K55VM-SX064V Notebook - NotebookCheck.net Reviews
Yes, it's an old laptop.. but the only present model selling from asus, so availability is not much of an issue.
I recommend this i7 processor only if u need more processing power for the work u do.
Otherwise this one would so.. i'm not sure if the gt 635m here has 96 shaders or 144... but if it's a rebranded gt 555m then better.
ASUS K55VJ-SX120D Laptop (Intel Core i5 3210- 8GB RAM- 750GB HDD- 15.6 Inches- DOS- 2GB Graph) (Dark Indigo Glossy IMR) - Buy Online @ Best Price | Snapdeal.com

 

[omega44-xt]

Go for S04 no heating or throttling issues
z500 has its battery integrated.. u are a power on user so the battery cannot be removed while plugged in.

Note those points .......

I would personally recommend S04....... due to its advantages, that u know. I would like to say that Samsung's service is not bad. Its slow but they will get the things done.....

Don't go for GT630M when u can get GT650M or atleast GT740M

 

[powerstarprince]

Yeah +1 to anupam
go for s04.. this is the best time of the year to grab it before its stock ends.

 

[xsreality]

The drawback of it is the gt 630m gpu which is getting outdated and a 3rd gen i7 on a non-gaming laptop would heat a lot and should be coupled with a cooling pad. Disable turbo boost to game and u can reduce a few degrees in temps. This heating is usually when u run intensive apps especially games.. but for all other purposes it's not a problem at all.
The other stuff are that it lacks good audio and has an average display..
read this review if u haven't Review Asus K55VM-SX064V Notebook - NotebookCheck.net Reviews

Note those points .......

I would personally recommend S04....... due to its advantages, that u know. I would like to say that Samsung's service is not bad. Its slow but they will get the things done.....

Don't go for GT630M when u can get GT650M or atleast GT740M

Thanks for the info shadow and anupam... Yes I am leaving ASUS out of consideration.

Integrated battery not good while always plugged in is one big point raised in the thread. Any suggestions on the best way to use the laptop while always plugged in for maximum battery life? Removing it is fine but can't be done all the time.

On Lenovo laptops, there is a feature in energy management tool to fix the battery at 60% instead of full charge while plugged in. For Lithium batteries this is recommended... what do you think guys?

Yeah +1 to anupam
go for s04.. this is the best time of the year to grab it before its stock ends.

Yeah one more thing guys... If there is any good model expected in the next month do let me know. I can possibly wait till end of September as I currently have an old HP laptop gotten from office which I am using for day-to-day work. I may have to return this laptop in Oct due to project change or company switch. If nothing, I would prefer to buy one immediately.

 

[bala_cpu]

@op
there is also a new version in the name of s06IN

 

[powerstarprince]

Then put the limit of battery to 70% and most of times u can use it plugged in but to get most out of battery... everyday use it on battery for atleast an hour or so. And then charge it back to 70%... u can also fill it upto 100% when u are travelling and such. Advantage of this is it saves few extra charge cycles..